Tony will be staying in Houston a few more days, but this isn't really bad news. It could be very good news. He expects to be able to leave Houston on Wednesday or Thursday, and be back in Alaska by Saturday or Sunday.
The tumor was very vascular (lots of blood vessels feeding it), so he is going to receive an IV drip medication every three weeks that will prevent the formation of new blood vessels. This is intended to starve the tumor so it can't grow anymore. He will also be on a chemo medicine (different from his past one) that should attack what may be left of the tumor. This medicine is oral, and taken for two weeks followed by a week off. This chemo medicine doesn't usually make you feel sick. He will fly to Houston every six weeks for a checkup with the doctors.
The phrase above, "what may be left of the tumor", is intentional because the doctor isn't sure if what is left is tumor or scar tissue. Even if it is scar tissue, there could be microscopic fingers of tumor left that you can't see during surgery or on an MRI.
He will start chemo, and get the IV drip on Monday, hang around a couple of days for observation of any adverse reactions, and then be turned loose to leave.
The main disappointment in all of this is he had plans to see his friends in Fayetteville on Sunday, and those plans are now scuttled.
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Will the IV drip prevent him from healing if he say gets a scrape or cut or something? It seems that it would interfere with that a bit. :S Keep it up Tony! We love you!
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